


Balanced Scales

by DisasterZone42 (WizWitch)



Series: Pomegranate Seeds [1]
Category: Milo Murphy's Law
Genre: AU, And Melissa's current situatio, For Want of a Nail, Gen, Previous incidences affect Milo's current personality, Suicide warning for later chapters, all shall be explained in time
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-09
Updated: 2017-04-10
Packaged: 2018-09-23 03:11:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9638450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WizWitch/pseuds/DisasterZone42
Summary: Murphy's Law: the belief that anything that can go wrong will go wrong, often in the the most inconvenient way possible. A fact of life for Milo Murphy, who has to remain distant from everyone around him in order to keep them from getting hurt. So naturally, he can't help but be confused when the new kid, Zack Underwood, insists on being friends with him.





	1. The New Kid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Milo meets a new kid at his bus stop who doesn't seem to grasp the concept of him being jinxed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well here's a fun AU. Basically, Laneypenn and I talk on tumblr about various ideas and headcanons for the backgrounds of various characters of MML, including the possibility of Melissa having helped him accept/deal with his condition when they were younger.
> 
> So what if she couldn't?

I tightened my grip on Diogee’s leash when I saw the bus stop. Of course, Bradley and his friends were there--that was normal--but there was a kid I  _ didn’t _ recognize there, too, and I wasn’t prepared for that.

New kid to maybe feel pity towards me for perhaps a couple days, only to avoid me at all costs once they learned of Murphy’s Law. I...I could handle that…

As usual, when I arrived at the bus stop, everyone who knew about my condition moved away. The new kid didn’t, though, instead giving the others a strange look before looking over at me. “What’s that about?”

I gripped my bag straps and started rubbing my thumbs against the rough fabric at the question. Friendly interactions--a great way to catch Murphy’s Law’s attention.

“They just worry for their safety,” I answered without looking at the new kid. “Gotta stay away from the jinx…”

“‘The jinx’?”

I nodded and watched as he reached to pet Diogee, but then pulled back before he could get too close--probably was starting to realize everyone had a good reason to move away.

“What does that mean?”

“It means he’s a danger to everyone! Why are you even riding the bus, Milo?”

...thank you, Bradley…

I looked up to see the new kid’s reaction, but I couldn’t see it due to him looking at Bradley. “What, is he a danger just by existing or something? I find that a bit hard to believe…”

“It’s Murphy’s Law,” I commented as I bounced on my toes a bit. “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and often in the most inconvenient way.”

“In this case, ‘inconvenient’ means ‘dangerous’,” Bradley corrected with a huff. “I still can’t believe you put everyone in danger like this…”

“Sorry, Bradley…”

The new kid turned to give me a confused look, but I ducked my head down without answering right as the bus came up. Diogee and I climbed on with ease, and I helped him into the back seat with me as everyone else climbed on. Diogee climbed into my lap with my bag to press on my legs, and I closed my eyes to relax a bit before feeling someone come to the back of the bus.

The new kid.

“Hey, there,” he greeted with a smile. “I’m Zack--I don’t think I caught your name.”

I rolled my eyes and put a hand on Diogee’s back. “Why are you back here?”

The new kid--Zack, that’s what he said his name was--shrugged and almost turned sideways in his seat. “I wanted to figure out what’s going on with you--starting with your name.”

“It’s Milo, and as for what’s going on with me, I think Bradley and I said it all at the bus stop--I’m  _ dangerous _ , and people need to stay away from me where it’s safe. That’s why you need to be in the front of the bus away from me, and I’m sure any of them will explain my condition to you.”

“Well, the bus is moving, and last time I checked, it can be dangerous to move seats while the vehicle’s in motion.”

Dang it, why was this kid so  _ stubborn _ ?

“Fine. Next stop, though, you have to head to the front of the bus.”

Zack shrugged and I rolled my eyes again before gazing out the window. It’d only be for a couple minutes--then I’d never have to deal with this kid again...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow that was shorter than expect. ^^' Next chapter will be my standard length, and we'll get to see some classroom stuff with these kids. Also, don't ask where Melissa is, because that /will/ be answered in a later chapter.


	2. Stubborness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zack is stubborn and Milo is confused

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's short. There's a lot of stuff I wanna put in th enext chapter, though

Zack was a liar.

Instead of going to the front of the bus with all the normal kids, he remained in the back seat with me while the other kids gossiped.

_ “Look, someone's back there with him.” _

_ “How long do you think until he gets hurt?” _

_ “Oh, please--Murphy's Law will scare him off before then.” _

“Hey, are you alright?”

“M’fine…”

Even without looking at him, I could feel Zack’s concern rolling off him in waves, but I quickly tried to push it away. Even if it was genuine, it would fade away once he saw Murphy’s Law in action.

I couldn’t let myself get used to it.

“You know, I’m probably gonna need help getting around,” Zack commented, and I glanced over to see he had a slight grin. “You know, new school and all?”

“I’m sure there’ll be someone willing to help you.” I looked down at Diogee in my lap and started scratching him behind his ear. “Someone who's  _ not _ extremely dangerous to be around.”

“I doubt you're as dangerous as you and everyone claims.”

My hand clenched into a fist and Diogee let out a small whimper at the action. “Sorry…Anyway, Zack, I'm Edward Murphy's great-great-great-great-great grandson. Do you know how he discovered Murphy's Law? Around him, everything went _ wrong _ . He had a hereditary condition only inheritable by males in his family but  _ always _ got passed down, and it causes disasters to happen around us...¨

Suddenly he started laughing.

For a split second I thought of pushing him out of the seat, but then I quickly shoved that thought out of my mind. What was I thinking? I already caused enough problems for everyone--why should I risk making it worse by  _ purposely _ hurting someone? Plus knowing me, if Zack would end up getting severely injured if I pushed him out of the seat…

“I’m sorry…”

“Huh? Milo, are you okay?”

I didn’t answer, instead wrapping my arms around Diogee and ducking my head down to bury my face in his fur. Everyone was right about me being dangerous… I couldn’t even keep my patience enough to keep back thoughts of hurting others…

What was wrong with me?

I spent the rest of the bus ride like that, ignoring Zack trying to get me to interact with him. Why was he being such an idiot? What part of “I’m dangerous to be around” was he not getting?!

...Was he really this insistent on being my friend?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't sound so surprised, Milo


End file.
